XXX
by Lirene
Summary: Ten months have passed but Kudo Shinichi is no closer to catching the Black Organisation. That is until help came from a familiar yet unexpected person.
1. Prologue

Hajimemashite. This is my first fan fiction so please be kind on me. Please review!

Disclaimer: I obviously do not own Detective Conan. Gosho Aoyama does.

Prologue

She stared around the spacious room, willing the password to come to her. On the dark mahogany desk, a laptop screen flashed the words- 'Wrong Password. 3rd attempt. The computer will shut down automatically after this.' The window was open and a wind rustled the heavy velvet curtains, startling her. Suddenly, her eyes fell on the dartboard right across the desk. An ordinary dartboard with three pictures of not so ordinary people. A picture of herself with the nickname 'Angel' splashed across it. An attractive woman with short auburn hair nicknamed 'Sherry'. And seven-year-old boy with round glasses nicknamed Cool Guy. The pictures of totally different people with only one similarity. They all had a huge capital 'X' splashed across it and a dart sticking out where the two lines of the 'X' intersected. An idea crossed her mind.

"XXX"

She typed those letters in and pressed ENTER, praying silently that it would work. Her whole plan depended on whether these three simple letters were the password. A million thoughts crossed her mind. Why would someone so intelligent use something so simple for a password? What if she was wrong? No, she definitely was. No one would be so stupid to use a three-letter password with the exact same letters. Impossible!

But it was the password and that dispelled all her negative thoughts. The screen flashed once and the words 'Welcome' appeared. That word had never seemed so welcome to her.

As the laptop hummed to life, she hurriedly put the CD lying on the desk in and waited impatiently for it to load. 'How strange it is for someone so smart to use such an obscure thing as the CD. It takes a long time to delete information on that stuff.'

As the CD loaded and the screen filled with data, she added to herself, 'Which is _exactly_ the point.' Then, she turned her full attention to the data on the screen. It was all about someone named 'Miyano Shiho', someone who looked exactly like the woman nicknamed 'Sherry' and bore uncanny resemblance to Haibara Ai. She skimmed through the data, memorising the format in which everything was presented. Then, without any hesitation, she pressed the button DELETE. She drummed her fingers against the desk as she waited for the information to vanish completely.

She grinned from ear to ear as she replaced the information about Miyano Shiho with the data on Antonino Amandore, the elusive Italian mafia boss and a close ally of the Black Organisation. She was careful to present it in the exact same format to make sure that everyone thought that 'she' did it. "The FBI will have a field day." She thought to herself as her gloved fingers flew across the keyboard, leaving no fingerprints behind. Soon, she was done and she removed the disk, placing it in the exact same position. As a precaution, she inserted a virus into the laptop, a new and powerful virus that would wipe out all the data stored in the software. A very effective way of erasing one's traces.

And then, she left, leaving nothing but disaster in her wake.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

_Mouri Detective Agency, 4 August, 8.05 AM_

"Oooh, a hot chick," Mouri Kogorou exclaimed as he perused the front page of the newspaper while sipping his morning coffee. It was a lazy Saturday morning. Sunlight streamed in the transparent windows of the Agency, lighting up the office.

Conan looked up from his breakfast, curious. It wasn't everyday that hot chicks made the front page of the newspaper. They were usually, no always, in the lifestyle section. It was a small difference but one nonetheless. He would not even have noticed it when he was the Great High School Detective but becoming Conan had made him paranoid and wary, aware of even the littlest details. However, he wasn't too bothered by the minuscule mystery. Soon enough, that old man would give him and Ran as well as the whole street a highly useless summary of the headline.

True enough, Kogorou was soon pointing to the paper and gushing to Ran, "Look at that. Such a gorgeous woman. Even more than her mother."

"She has a cold aura about her. I think Sharon was more warm and beautiful," Ran replied dryly. Conan perked up at the name. They were talking about someone named Sharon. A foreigner and probably someone famous. Sharon Vineyard? And her supposed daughter, Chris? (They were actually the same person, Vermouth.) Probably not. She had been keeping a low profile since that fiasco.

Meanwhile, Kogorou continued his praises, "No, no. She has both brains and beauty. A true jewel-"

"Why don't you just read the article to us?" Ran interrupted, looking a tad annoyed. Kogorou, always oblivious, thus began,

"Chris Vineyard- The beauty and brain of America."

"Eh? The American actress?" Conan exclaimed, thoroughly shocked. "Wasn't she keeping a low profile? What the hell is she doing on the front-page news? Captured by the FBI? Not probable. She's not so easy to be caught. Killed by them. Probable. They don't like her much. Then again, she's not that easy to kill."

However, a 'thump' on his head effectively roused him from his thoughts. "Don't interrupt me, you brat!" Kogorou snapped, glaring at Conan who glared back, just as furious. Ran smoothed Conan's head soothingly and he cooled off in favor of listening to Kogorou's summary of the headlines.

Kogorou cleared his throat to reclaim their attention. "Chris Vineyard- The beauty and brain of America. Ms Vineyard reveals critical evidence to convict Antonino Amandore, the mafia boss." Kogorou paused to show them the various pictures of the said actress. Conan's stomach curled into a tight knot as he remembered what had happened the last time he had seen that harsh beautiful face.

"Last night, Chris Vineyard, 24, the famed American actress, unveiled crucial evidence against Antonino Amandore, the Italian mafia boss who was recently arrested by the CIA. Ms Vineyard was attending the Masquerade Ball which she co-organised at the Pandora Mansion, 4 Shinja Lane.

The extensive evidence that she collected would be more than enough to charge Antonino Amandore of being guilty of drug trafficking, kidnapping, bribery and ten other charges. This comes as a great time as Amandore would be released this weekend as there was not enough evidence.

When asked to comment on how she had collected the evidence, Ms Vineyard simply said her most famous phrase, "A secret makes a woman woman." _Continued on Page 2._"

Conan stared, his jaw dropping down. _Why?_ It was the only thing that he was capable to asking given his current condition. Why would Vermouth do something so flamboyant? Why? Why? Why? Everything did not fit. If that Antonio something was their nemesis, they had a million ways to kill him. So why? It didn't make any sense.

With so many questions and no answers, the only way was to gather more information and investigate. With that thought in mind, he reached out and snatched Kogorou's paper away. He skimmed the front page, taking notes of the details. _Pandora Mansion. 4 Shinja (Pearl) Lane. Yamada Matsumoto. Chairman of Matsumoto Electronics. Masquerade Party. 7pm to 12am…_

'Thump!' and this time, it was more lethal. A bruise the size of an egg swelled on his head. An involuntary 'Ow!' escaped him.

"Brat," Kogorou muttered and snatched the paper back. "Don't stick your nose into things that don't concern you!" Conan rubbed his head resentfully, forgetting to glare at Kogorou.

Kogourou then put down the newspaper and started on his breakfast while Conan gazed at the paper longingly. He would have to buy a copy later but he wanted the information now. And badly. Real badly. As if reading his mind, Ran reached for the paper and handed it to him.

"What are you doing? That brat d-" Kogorou eyed Conan suspiciously.

"Just let him read, Otou-san. He looks curious. Besides, reading newspapers is good for his Japanese." Ran injected in her cool, calm tone.

"Arigatou, Ran nee-chan," Conan replied, smiling at her with genuine joy, grateful for the help. Ran returned the smile but she looked distant. Maybe she was sad over him. Again. When was the last time he had called? A week ago? Or two? He made a mental note to do so as soon as he got out of the house. But all thoughts were pushed out of his mind as he immersed himself in the detailed article. It seemed that the Organization had finally slipped up after decades of caution. This might be the chance that he was waiting, the chance to finish them once and for all.

The call could wait. He had some things to do.

* * *

_Tokyo Shore Towers, 4 August, 12.05 AM_

The room was dimly lit. Beams of moonlight filtered through the thick curtains, illuminating the grandiose furniture that the room contained. A Vermeer framed in silver hung above the marble fireplace. An ornate mahogany desk stood in the middle. Many other priceless pieces of furniture adorned the room. The room was simply heavenly if one chose to ignore the crimes committed to furnish the place so extravagantly.

In a dark corner, a lady clad in black lounged on an upholstered silk armchair, sipping a crystal glass of red wine and looking like she owned the place, which she did,. "You're late," She spoke in perfect English, twirling the glass in her hand. Her accent was difficult to place. It was neither British nor American, Asian nor European. It was universal.

"I had some business to attend to. As a result of yesterday's fiasco. You might remember, " A low voice replied from the shadows.

"Indeed, I do," she smiled, pausing. "Come out of those shadows. It is no fun talking to someone whom you can't see. And have a glass of wine, won't you? 1948. It was an excellent year for wine."

"Have you dealt with Margarita? She was responsible for ruining the operation, wasn't she? The information on Sherry was swapped with Signor Antonino" He cut straight to the point, ignoring the wine glass she was offering him, his black trench coat rustling and his long silver hair swaying as he stepped out into the moonlight.

"Ah, yes, yes. She was supposed to disguise as me and pretend to produce information on that criminal scientist but somehow the information turned out to be on Signor Antonino instead. Poor him, he would be spending quite some time in jail." She sighed in fake regret.

"She compiled the information didn't she? Did she swap it? Was she a traitor?" He asked, impatient for the truth.

"Yes, she did compile it. But she did not switch it. She wasn't a traitor. "

Sensing his skepticism, she elaborated, "I have personally interrogated her and found her innocent. Regrettably, she just wasn't careful enough to check that someone else had not switched the information."

"Are you sure?"

"You doubt me?"

His skin crawled a little as he heard the edge in her voice but he did not show it. Any sign of weakness and she would be shoving a knife down his throat. He changed tact. "Have you dealt with her?"

"Rest assured that I have done so, and in the most suitable way too. There will not be any more trouble." She paused again. "Alas, we would not have her services again. A very talented young woman she was but we cannot forgo such mistakes." She said all this in a light, breezy tone, all the while twirling her glass as if amused by the situation. With that, he was reminded that she was one of the highest-ranking members of the Organization and she was lethal, very very lethal.

"So if it wasn't Margarita, then who did it?"

"I do not know."

He was surprised by her frankness. But before he could say or think anything else, she continued, "Whoever the culprit was, he or she was good. He did not leave any traces at all. None."

Again, he was surprised. It was rare when she gave out compliments. "Are you sure it wasn't a group?" He asked.

"I do not think so." Her brow furrowed a little.

"Should I obliterate the scenes?"

"That is not necessary. There is nothing there to link to us. Besides, the silver bullets are already suspicious. No need to make them any more wary." She sipped her wine. "The Boss expects you full circle at the Sapphire Reichienbach Falls in the land of the rising sun, during the next volatile Witching Hour of the Wall Way."

He was about to tell her to shut up and get straight to the point when the full message of the riddle hit him. "I understand." He replied curtly before turning on his heel and in a flash he was gone.

Vermouth watched him leave, setting down her glass and stretching. A smile curved on her lips as she reached for her briefcase. She had some things to do.

* * *

Hello there. Thank you to the excellent readers who reviewed. I greatly appreciate it. Also, I'd like to apologise for the late update. There was a cocktail of a dozen reasons. Anyway, I should be updating once a month and I hope to finish this story by the end of this year. Criticism is greatly appreciated. XD


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